The present invention is directed in brief toward a container opener and in particular to a device for closing or opening closures for containers or jars which are sealed with a twist lid and also for opening containers which are sealed with crimped lids such as conventional cans.
Electric can openers have been produced and have obtained general acceptance with the public as a useful device for opening conventional crimped cans. However, apparatus for removing threaded lids from jars or similar containers have only been produced in limited quantities and generally for commercial or industrial uses such as food manufacturers. Threaded lids have been found to be extremely practical for jars or other containers intended to contain such goods as preserved foodstuffs, medicine and household cleaners, since they provide a positive and durable seal of the products enclosed therein. Most of these containers are sealed at the manufacturer's site by a commercial type sealer. As a result of the friction between the lid and the container generated by the sealing machines, a considerable force is required to loosen the lid when the container is opened for the first time.
Although a number of jar openers have been produced, none of the suggested openers have provided a convenient jar opener which requires little or no manual force to be applied to the container and lid. This has presented many problems particularly for women, the elderly and the young since they do not often possess the strength required to overcome the sealing friction.
Particularly, the tong or wrench type openers enable the user to apply a greatly magnified force to the lid of the container but still require a considerable manual force to be applied directly to the jar which is often made of glass and is difficult to hold against the rotation of the lid.
The object of the present invention is to provide a new and improved jar opener which is powered by an electric motor and which requires very little force to be exerted by the user for opening a jar or other container.
In the preferred embodiment of the present invention a slightly modified, conventional can opener is provided where the can opener motor also provides the power for opening threaded lids from jars. When opening a jar, the can opener is positioned with its normal front face, containing the rotatable knife edge and the gear for engaging the lip of a can which is recessed on the underside of the housing, facing downward on a table or other suitable supporting surface. A generally vertical chuck support column is pivotally mounted on the can opener housing and supports a vertically positionable chuck which frictionally engages the threaded cap. A rotatable platform is mounted on the can opener output shaft for supporting a jar in an upright position and rotating the jar relative to the upper chuck. The chuck includes clamp means to bias the chuck into engagement with a lid and the biasing force thereby generated actuates the drive means which causes the jar or container to be rotated relative to the lid to thereby loosen the lid for easy removal by the consumer. The motor can be reversible to permit tightening a lid on a jar, e.g., in preservative "canning.